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Basic football strategy

To many fans, the chief draw of football is the chess game that goes on between the two coaching staffs. Each team has a playbook of dozens to hundreds of plays. Plays are the directions for what the players should do on a down. Some plays are very safe; they are very likely to get a few yards, but not much more than that. Other plays have the potential for long gains but a greater risk of a loss of yardage or a turnover.

Generally speaking, rushing plays are less risky than passing plays. However, there are relatively safe passing plays and risky running plays. To fool the other team, there are passing plays designed to look like running plays and vice versa. There are many trick or gadget plays, such as when a team lines up like it is going to kick and then tries to run or pass for a first down. Such high-risk plays are a great thrill to the fans when they work. However, they can spell disaster if the opposing team realizes the deception and acts accordingly.

It has been said that football is the closest sport that strategically resembles real war, which may explain why it is by far the most popular sport in the American military. In fact, the United States Military Academy, the United States Naval Academy, and the United States Air Force Academy each field football teams that participate in Division I-A of the NCAA. Army and Navy have a particularly historic rivalry.